Once
upon a time... when John “The Gladiator” Molina, 21-1 (17), turned pro,he and SergioDiaz
Jr., longtime manager of oneAntonio
Margarito, worked together. After a few fights, Molina, along
with his father, decided to navigate the boxing waters on their own. Following
the amicable split, Diaz and the Molina camp stayed close and on good terms,
although not directly working with each other.

Sometimes
the best of intentions are there; a father and son combination will work to a
degree- sometimes it won't. With the Molina camp, it's been an interesting
ride.

Goossen
Tutor Promotions signed the big puncher and gave him a busy schedule. Everything
looked good, with some changes along the way. With his original trainer out of
the camp, Molina moved on, going on to taste his first pro loss against the
capable Martin Honorio in November of 2009. In that fight, Molina looked
listless, unable to get off with his shots, ultimately getting outworked via
ten-round unanimous decision with the vacant NABF/WBO NABO lightweight titles
at stake.

After
a couple of early blowout wins in stay-busy fights and the Henry Lundy stoppage
win in July of last year, it became clear to Molina that he and his father had
gone as far as they could together. With several managers interested in him,
Molina chose to join Sergio Diaz once again.

“Sergio
came back into the picture because I'm at the stage in my career that I need
legitimate representation, which Sergio will provide. I mean, my father will
still be there, working close with him, even though Sergio has full rein to
call the shots, taking it forward.” commented Molina.

“I
had a few offers from some other managers but I always said that if I wanted
another manager again, it would be Sergio.”

“This
is a business and my career so I have to go with whom I think is the best for
me, no disrespect to those others, but I don't know the others as well as I do
Sergio.” stated Molina.

“Although
my dad was in charge these last few years, I know Sergio will get me to the
top. After all, he got fighters like Margarito to the top in the last ten
years.''

Diaz
agreed that Molina needed help to get moving forward again.

“I
reached out to his dad and see what happened to John. He had been sick, hadn't
fought, so Senior and Junior and I met up and decided to get back on together
to get his career to the top,” said Diaz. “His father did what he thought was
best but they have seen that at times, one, as a father, starts to make
decisions as such and although the best of intentions are there, a lot of the
times, that just doesn't work as they hope. So at times, one [as a father]
needs to sit back and work more as a straight-up manager. We will all work good
together.”

Joe
Goossen, who was brought aboard by the Molina camp last year, was also
replaced, marking another change in trainers, building an aura of
inconsistency, to which Molina would also comment on.

“The
fact is that [Joe] is a defensive trainer, his style is no secret; he brought
inDiego Corrales, hadGabriel Ruelas, who
countered…I wanted to have more options, adding some defensive work was the
reason for Joe. I'm a big, strong lightweight and want to use my God-given
gifts. I will be using my jab more, something I didn't use before. I will use
what Joe taught me, incorporate it and put it all together.''

To
put that to the test, Sergio Diaz's Showdown Promotions will feature a seven-fight cardat the BlueWater Resort and Casino in
Parker, Arizona this Saturday night.

Facing
Molina will be Mexico's Alejandro Rodriguez, 12-2 (6).

The
battle-tested Rodriguez should give Molina some solid work, as the latter hasn't
fought since winning the WBO NABO lightweight title in a come-back-from-behind
thriller against Henry Lundy in July of last year, stopping Lundy in the 11thround in the nationally televised
bout.

Rodriguez
is no pushover, as he just went the distance with the undefeated Eloy Perez in
his last outing back in April.

“[Rodriguez]
comes to fight. Although smaller than me and not as strong, he is a Mexican
fighter, so I know he comes to fight. He is rangy and I know he will not go
down easy,” said Molina.

“I
won't take him lightly. I'm well prepared and I'm bigger and ready to showcase
myself. I want people to see a smarter fighter in the ring now.”

The
card is a Showdown Promotions event; Molina is still a Goossen Tutor fighter,
with Goossen Tutor allowing a one-time exception for Molina to fight on this
card.

“Goossen
Tutor made an exception to my contract for this one, that is so I can fight and
work on getting some rust off. No disrespect to Rodriguez because he is a tough
fighter himself and again, not to be taken lightly,” concluded Molina.

Although
Molina is not taking Rodriguez lightly, as he is three pounds over the 135-pound
weight limit as of Tuesday, speaking highly of his current training, his
management has another fight lined up already. Diaz and Goossen Tutor have
their charge scheduled to face the tricky Robert Frankel onJune 24thin an ESPN2-televised fight at thePechanga Resort and Casinoin Temecula, CA.

All
that is needed is for Frankel to sign off on the contract and Molina to clearSaturday night's
fight.

Sponsoring
Saturday night's event, which will take place in an outdoor amphitheater, next
to the Colorado River, will be Budweiser and the BlueWater Resort and Casino.

Rounding
out the fight card will be Diaz's newest signee, a 19-year-old Phoenix, AZ.-based,
Tijuana-born welterweight national champion, Juan Gonzalez, who will be making
his pro debut. Diaz is very excited to see him start his career at the pro
level.

Gonzales
will take on Anthony Garcia.

Another
Diaz signee, super lightweight Jonathan Garcia will see action against the
dangerous Rufino Flores.